Orange Coast College's Chamber Singers, along with a few other choruses from California, Texas and New York, took part in a performance of Mozart's Requiem at Carnegie Hall in New York City on June 24. Eliza Rubenstein, the Director of Choral and Vocal Activities at OCC, conducted the performance.
In May, OCC’s top choir had a successful performance of Mozart’s Requiem to a sold-out crowd at the Robert B. Moore Theatre, which served as a precursor to their appearance at Carnegie Hall.
“We spent two and a half days rehearsing the work in New York,” said Rubenstein. “This is my fourth time conducting at Carnegie, and it never ceases to be magnificent.”
Since 2012, the OCC Chamber Singers have been invited to perform at Carnegie Hall every two to three years by Manhattan Concert Productions, the company that organizes and produces the performance.
“The venue is inspiring by virtue of its history, but it's also simply one of the most resplendent acoustics anywhere in the world; when you give your best artistry to the hall, it gives it back tenfold,” explained Rubenstein. “Students who have sung there over the years describe it as almost an otherworldly experience. When you walk off the stage after performing there, you feel changed.”